If plans come to fruition, Illinois would be the third online presence for Barstool Sportsbook after Pennsylvania and Michigan, states where it ranked third in handle among as many as a dozen mobile choices.
Barstool also operates bricks-and-mortar sportsbooks in Colorado and Indiana. Look for expansion through its ownership by Penn National Gaming, which owns 36 percent of Barstool. With the Hollywood properties in Aurora and Joliet and Ameristar in Indiana, Barstool could boast three locations not far from Chicago.
To date, five companies have an online operation in Illinois, including DraftKings, BetRivers, FanDuel, PointsBet and William Hill. The combined handle in December exceeded $491 million, fourth highest in the country, according to Sports Handle.
Barstool hopes to be ready to accept bets by the NCAA tournament later this month. The company could trigger more online entrants in Illinois, such as BetMGM and Unibet. With FanDuel tied to the Fairmount Park, BetMGM could partner with Par-A-Dice Casino, owned by Boyd Gaming. Unibet might well tie in to Argosy Casino.
